He groomed children at the Ripple Road mosque in Barking, showing them an IS video as an example for their goal. One victim told police that Haque had aimed to gather an army of 300 men and was teaching the boys “terrorism, like how to fight”. Umar plotted to target landmarks including Big Ben, the Queen’s Guard and Westfield shopping centre, Shia Muslims, Heathrow, City Banks, the media, embassies, the English Defence League or Britain First, using guns and a car packed with explosives.
The attacks plot was pursued with the help of others. Abuthaher Mamun, 19, and Muhammad Abid, 27, were convicted of attempting to help the would-be terrorist with fundraising and support. However, Umar pleaded guilty only to four charges of collecting information useful for terrorism and one of disseminating a terrorist document, but denied two charges of preparing for acts of terrorism. The prosecutor, Mark Heywood QC, told the jury that Haque had determined in 2016 and early 2017 to carry out one or more violent attacks with others in the UK. Haque was convicted by a jury at the Old Bailey on Friday. The judge, Mr Justice Haddon-Cave said he would sentence later.
